A Kasha's Despair
by Pitta
Summary: Worry and fear lead to frightening thoughts. Especially when your friend and the future of Gensokyo is at stake... Pre-SA one-shot.


**I decided to do something different. I have this idea for a little while and it keeps me from continuing my other stories. And I was curious about writing for this fandom. Please keep in mind, English is NOT my native language.**

 **Since I know I have devoted readers from other fandoms, I will make this one clear: Rin = Orin and Utsuho = Okuu. If you have trouble with keeping up, check out the Touhou wikia page for Subterranean Animism, Rin or Utsuho.**

 **Disclaimer: I own nothing, including the picture.**

Rin Kaenbyou lay on her bed in the Palace of the Earth Spirits. She was in her youkai form, yet that didn't help her cat ears from flatting down. Her two black red tails were pushed against her calves. Her eyes were puffy and two small wet lines went from her eyes to her chin. One thing was clear: she was worried. Very worried. Worried about the future. Worried about all the living things in Gensokyo. But most of all, worried about her friend, Utsuho. Her best friend since the underground world and the Hell of Blazing Fires were separated, her lovable birdbrain, had gone dark. The friend she knew, wasn't anymore. Rin had seen it firsthand. That painful discussion. That horrible event replayed in her mind:

 _The kasha walked around in the depths of hell. She felt something was very off. She hoped it was just a thought, but she soon discovered she was right._

 _'_ _Maybe Okuu knows what's going on…' Rin muttered to herself. The flames were higher than it used to be. Because they were Satori's only humanoid pets, their job was to regulate Hell's temperature. If it was too warm (which was never the case), Utsuho would open the skylight. When the temperature was too low, she would throw the corpses of sinners into the fire. It was Rin's job to snatch away the corpses on the surface and bring them to the Hell of Blazing Fires with her wheelbarrow (she was a Kasha after all). The problem was, she hadn't been on the surface for a whole week. Why could it be so warm? She reached the lower part of the furnace. This was the place Okuu spent the most time._

 _'_ _Okuu?!' she shouted, looking around. Her friend was nowhere to be found. A flock of hell ravens was bathing in the fire._

 _'_ _Hey! Do you know where Oku- I mean Utsuho is?' Rin asked. The pitch black birds raised their heads and stared at the hell cat._

 _'_ _Caw-caw-caw!' loud despair calls were their answers. With the one lesson she got from her friend to understand the raven language (Okuu had already forgotten 9/10 of it), Rin could make out she should forget about it. This was definitely worrying. Was something wrong with Okuu?_

 _'_ _But where is she?' she asked again. Then a call caught her attention:_

 _'_ _Orin!' the flock ravens got the hell away with caws of distress. Rin looked behind her and saw the friend she was looking for. The long black hair. The massive black wings, kept aloft by her cape. But when she got a closer look, her heart skipped a beat in shock. On her right arm, she wielded a frightening arm cannon. Her right leg was covered in concrete and a white particle of light orbited around her left ankle. But the worst thing: a giant, evil, red eye was placed in the middle of her "developed" chest._

 _'_ _O-okuu, w-what have you d-done?' Rin asked worried. Utsuho flipped a bang of hair away._

 _'_ _Pff…nothing special, only obtained the ultimate energy. Oh mighty Yatagarasu, embodiment of the natural nuclear fusion power plant, the sun, make these flames of hellfire rise!' Orin was confused. On top of her physical change, she was suddenly capable to say these more complicated words._

 _'_ _Okuu, are you all right? What happened?' the Kasha asked._

 _'_ _As you can see, I have now the control over nuclear fusion. The gods of the mountain blessed me with this power! You know what I can do now?' Okuu's usual enthusiasm was still present, but a dark undertone made it much more terrifying. This was also noticed by Rin. This was the first time she felt awkward around her friend. And why would the gods from the mountain come to give Utsuho some powers? Was it because the Hell of Blazing Fires was slowly dying out? She hoped so._

 _'_ _This is to keep the Hell of Blazing Fires alive, isn't it?' Okuu burst out in laughing. But not in a friendly way. A shiver went down Orin's spine. The hair on her tails stood upright. Her ears faced backwards and she had a slightly bent back. Utsuho had spread her wings._

 _'_ _No, no, no. You know what I'm gonna do? I make a new home. On the surface world!'_

 _'_ _But we can't go to the surface! We don't belong there!' Rin protested._

 _'_ _I know how to solve that problem. I will turn the surface into a new hell! All living creatures will be wiped out. The ground will be an ashed, radioactive wasteland!' Orin's eyes grew in fear. No, this wasn't right. This wasn't Okuu. This wasn't the friend she knew. Who was the hell raven she was talking to? What had the mountain gods done to her?_

 _'_ _No, Okuu, this isn't a good plan…' Orin protested._

 _'_ _But think about us. We are forced to live here. We are the outcast! We can give everyone a new home! Think about Satori-sama! She is so depressed. Then she can be with Koishi-sama. And think about all the Oni, and the cats and ravens. We can give them all new homes! What do you think? Do you help me conquering Gensokyo?' Orin's heart hurt. It hurt immensely. How her friend could say that? Sure, it was true that most living creatures in the underground world were outcasted. Satori and Koishi were hated because of their mind-reading third eyes. Ravens were a sign of illness and other bad things. The Kasha were hated, because they stole human corpses. But wiping the rest out? No. Never!_

 _'_ _I won't help you!' Rin shouted. 'Forget the plan!' Once again, Utsuho laughed in a hateful way._

 _'_ _Well, if you don't help me…' Then she pointed her arm cannon at her friend._

 _'_ _Then I have to see you as my enemy.'_

This was the moment Orin continued to cry on her bed. Utsuho had fired a sun at her. Although Rin had perfectly dodged it, the action itself had caused a large mental wound. Utsuho had shot at her. She saw her best friend as an enemy. Meanwhile, the soft caws in the distance had stopped. That indicated that it was late in the evening. Orin lay back on her pillow. She just wanted that this day never happened! But it definitely did.

'Okuu can't really take over Gensokyo, right?' she softly said. But what if she could. She had the power of a god and could throw as many suns as she desired. SUNS! You know, the massive plasma orbs that kept solar systems intact. And who knew what she could do more? She had heard stories of nuclear disasters, killing thousands of people and maiming generation after generation. What if… That were the two words she kept repeating the most. As the time flew by, the hell cat became tired. This didn't stop her from pondering, though. But pondering thoughts in the active mind are undistinguishable from the thoughts in the subconscious. This made the Kasha's night a living hell.

Time had passed. Okuu had officially lost herself. The flames of Hell were uncontrollable. The pressure on the lake above it increased to dangerous levels. At one point, the pressure was too much. With violence, the boiling hot water shot in the air. A geyser had formed. Orin had left the Palace of the Earth Spirits. She hoped that she could escape her thoughts, but she couldn't. Utsuho had left. Panic had struck in Rin's mind. She knew her friend was on the surface. Utsuho's mind was corrupted. Corrupted by the power within her body. The last editions of the Bunbunmaru Newspaper stated that the nuclear hell raven had broken the Spell Card Rules. This meant the end for many of the humans and youkai. Even the Hakurei miko wasn't prepared for this. She died a gruesome death. It was the last article that ever came out. Not long after, the Tengu were killed to extinction. Without the shrine maiden, nobody was safe. It took a few weeks before the whole surface world was burned to ash. Most of the underground residents were still unharmed. They were possibly one of the few creatures left. Maybe the immortals on the surface, like Yukari, Eirin, Kaguya, Mokou and the Moriya Goddesses were still alive.

Then, on a day, the villainous girl revisited the Palace of the Earth Spirits. Rin had heard the flaps of Okuu's massive wings. She decided to take a look, since Satori was probably oblivious to the situation. This could be severe. When Orin arrived, Utsuho had knocked on the door. When Satori came out, the raven shouted happily:

'Satori-sama! I did it! I burned the surface to the ground. I turned the world into hell!' Satori looked shocked as her third eye read her pet's heart. It was true. The awful images in Utsuho's mind were picked up by the pink-haired satori. Orin ran to her mistress.

'I tried to stop her!' she exclaimed. Miss Satori was furious. I had never seen her so angry. She slowly walked toward her pet raven. Okuu backed away, but was soon cornered.

'REIUJI UTSUHO!' Satori shouted. Orin knew it was very serious when she used that name. The sweat on the raven girl's forehead was clearly visible.

'B-but I created a new h-hell on the surface!' she defended herself with her arms crossed. 'I w-wanted you t-to be h-happ..'

SLAP! A small cry broke Orin's heart. Satori had slapped Utsuho in the face. Despite her weak hands, she managed to plant a print on her cheek.

'You've been a bad girl,' Satori said with a terrifying angry tone. Utsuho wanted to speak up, but was silenced again with a second slap. Orin was horrified to see her mistress punish her friend like that. Satori had lost herself. She kept yelling and hitting. She was also talking about Koishi. As if Okuu had to pay for Koishi's disappearance. Okuu had started to cry.

'I'm s-sorry!' she cried as tears started to mix with the blood of her injuries. The raven's cries were the point of breaking for Rin. She, too, had to sweep away a rolling tear.

'Satori-sama! Please stop!' the kasha spoke. The three-eyed girl looked at her other pet.

'If you hadn't hidden from me, I would have known this and nothing would have happened,' Satori said with a voice crack. Then she broke out in tears herself and embraced the girl she had just beaten up.

'Don't you know what they will do if they find out?' she sobbed.

'We already have.' A voice made the three turn around. A group Oni's approached. Yuugi Hoshiguma, one of the four divas of the mountain, was the leader.

'Y-you!' Satori said. 'I c-can handle this myself!'

'I'm sorry, Satori, I really am, but I have received orders from the Yama of Xanadu, as well as the Youkai of Boundaries and the Capital of the Moon.' She handed Satori a scroll.

'Utsuho Reiuji is responsible for the destruction of Gensokyo and broke the Spell Card Rules. We are ordered to send you to Shikieiki, if you know what I mean.' Orin and Satori gasped: that meant she had to die.,

'NOOOOO!' Rin shouted. She shot awake and sat up. It was a dream. A horrible, horrible dream. Tears started to stream. Okuu was a danger for everyone and herself. If she conquered Gensokyo, this nightmare would come true. The pain was too much. This wasn't going to happen. There had to be a solution. If only someone could talk sense into her. Or bring her back to her former self. Even with force. If only…

That night, Rin Kaenbyou ran away. It was better if Satori didn't know what she was going to do. And keeping a secret from a satori is impossible. Her plan was dangerous and forbidden. Being a Kasha, she had knowledge of controlling evil spirits. She knew an art to drive them to the surface. Okuu's geyser was the key. She had her plan in mind, and was determined to save her friend.

Later, the surface world was harassed by evil spirits. It was that day, the geyser incident began. Soon, two strong humans would descent and defeat the nuclear hell raven.

 **Well, what do you think? Was it decent?**

 **-Pitta.**


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